Grid assembly for bottle loading machines



Feb. 6, 1951 s. L. I l-:AcH 2,540,743

GRID ASSEMBLv FOR BOTTLE LOADING MACHINES Filed May 13,' 1948 5 sheets-sheet 1 mmm Feb. 6, 1951 s. l.. L EACH 2,540,743

GRID ASSEMBLY FOR BOTTLE LOADING MACHINES Filed May 15, 1948 s Sheets-sheet 2 oo l\ 'l l All g l! L W www Feb. 6, 1951 5 L, LEACH 2,540,743

GRID ASSEMBLY FOR BOTTLE LOADING MACHINES Filed May 13, 1948 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Feb. 6, 1951 :UNITED "STATE SI OFF ICE GRID ASSEBUSLY FOR BOTTLELQADING -MACHINES yMy. invention relates to. new and useful improvements in loading machinery andmore par.- ticulary to the type that is utilized in the loading of: beverage, bottles in cases. and the primary object `orti-ie invention resides in the provision of a structure for use in. connection therewith whereby `bottles may beloaded. into paper or cardboard i cartons and/or cases at thevvill of the operator.

Ax further object` of the invention resides in the provisionof an. improved grid, or the like, where by as-manyas twenty-four (24) bottles may be readilydisposed in compartments of a case or seriestof cartons without damage to the` bottles.

'A still, further object of the invention resides in constructing the. gridwith a means `for properly aligning paper or cardboard cartons in position and retaining the same in. such alignment for" reception in the compartments thereof of bottles dropped fromI a carrier thereabove.

'A still further object of the invention resides in the :provision of a specilic set of hinged sweeper blades onthegridtending to receive and grasp the` upper portions of a series of cardboard cartons,A so that the latter may be retained in proper position for the reception therein of bottles dropped from a` carrier thereabove.,

A still further object resides in the provision of, means in association with the sweeper blades to'permit the latter to also operate effectively in connectionwithA the usek of the device in the loadingof bottles into cases.

A further objectof the .invention resides in the provision or a device ofthe character mentioned which is comparatively simple and durable in construction, inexpensive `to manufacture and one which'. will ber very eilicient ini operation.

Withthese and numerous other objects in View;

my invention. consists in the novel features. of

construction, combination and .arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter referred to and more particularly pointed out inthe specification and claims..

Inlthe accompanying drawings forming a part of this application ,Figure 1 is a plan view of a grid utilized in` Figure 6 `is va. fragmentary elevation of the sweeper blades, showing particularly the Spring connection therebetween.

It is customary in beverage distributing plants to load bottles into woorden cases and" various typos ofloading machines have been devised for lli'ng a case with as many as twenty-four (24) bottleswithone operation. In one type machine to. whichmy invention particularly applies,` bestf illustrated in Patent Nos. 2,010,410, 2,102,640', 17,574,224, 1,61.1`,8222',179,648`and Re. 21,283, a device Knovvnas a grid. is utilized for'aiding` in the loading or a. plurality of bottles into comparte. mentsin. the wellknown, beverage case, the. latter beingA usually madeofwood., This grid'includ'es. a framedivided intospaces which. are adapted.V to..be aligned withthe compartmentsine.. case. so. that when the case is raisedto a, position just, below thel grid the .compartments -will be .aligned with bottlesl on a carrier above .the grid. When` the. .bottlesv are, released from the carrier,` the same'aredropped through the grid into the compartmentsA of the case. The grid is. usually provided with a plurality of leaf spring membersY which. tend to guide the bottles into the com partmentsof4 thecase and also. often the blow.,

tons have been designed .and'produced so that.v

six. (A6.) bottlesof: beverage may be dispensed to aV customer and conveniently carried to the home ot` the consumer. Vlfhereas,l the known devices for loading cases carrying twenty-four (24) bottles have: beenV more or less effective, the same devices` have been,` found to be ineffective when attempts have been made to utilize cardboard cartons therewith. This largely due to the fact that the` guidesprings ordinarily used on grids will, after slightuse, become distorted so that they will. not t directly into the compartments of. a `carl-lbcard carton and, furthermore, when. not.` indirect alignment with the compartments of such cartons, said springs Vwill tend to distort, if not actually crush, the cartons, Undersuch. conditions, bottles passing through the. grid Will not be received in the compartmentsv of the carton. but? will drop to the floor therebelow.

My invention contemplates the provision of-a. grid of the type now known and used but with means thereon for receiving, grasping and retaining. in rposition the `cardboard cartons so that the: pockets or compartments thereof will always. be properly aligned :with the lopenings inthe. topl of the grid so that bottles dropped through the latter will be received in the compartments or pockets of the respective cartons. My invention also contemplates such means as will not, after continuous use, become so ineffective as to permit of distortion or crushing of the carrier cartons, so that the latter at all times may be raised into position for reception of the bottles dropped thereinto.

In carrying out my invention, I shall refer to the drawings in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views and in which the numeral I designates generally the grid which is, in effect, a frame composed of end bars 2 which are interlocked with a plurality of, there being four (4) shown in the drawings, cross bars 3. The interlocking is accomplished by slotting the cross bars 3 at predetermined intervals to fit over the end bars 2 and these cross bars 3 which are in effect extensive longitudinally of the loading machine constitute means upon which bottles are moved thereon from a conveyor1 4, the latter being of the conventional type in a machine of this character. The bottles are shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 of the drawings as they are moved from the carrier 4 onto the cross bars 3 and as the 1cottles are fed from the carrier continuously, the Same are adapted to move to the outermost point on the grid at which point the same Will i shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4 of the drawings and constitutes no part of this invention and need not be discussed in detail. It will be seen, however, that the grid assembly composed of the end bars 2 and the cross bars 3 form twenty-four (24) compartments which may be designated generally by the numeral 5 and it is through these compartments that the bottles are adapted to pass to a point therebelow and be received in cardboard carrier cartons which I have represented in the drawings by dotted lines and designated by the numeral 6. These carrier cartons are of a size so that four (4) of same may be received in a wooden case or container 'I which is adapted to be supported on an elevating plat form 8. This platform is adapted to be moved upwardly toward the grid with which it is in alignment and at the present time, the bottles, as aforesaid, are adapted to pass therethrough and be received in the cartons supported below the grid.

It may be here stated that the grid assembly also includes a plurality of transverse cross bars 9 which are supported and interlocked with the cross bars 3 so as to form the particular compartments 5 heretofore described. The upper edges of the cross bars 9, however, are cut angularly to form a series of substantially V-shaped cut-outs. These cut-out upper edges of the cross bars 9 are now in use on certain known machines and tend to aid in directing the bottles into the compartments 5 when and if the same are not directed automatically in alignment with the compartments.

Riveted or otherwise similarly secured to the ends bars 2 and the cross bars 3 and 9 are the depending and so-mewhat arcuately formed spring fingers I0. Fingers of this general type have been known and used heretofore in bottle loading machinery, but in my device, I prefer to have these ngersof a width and of a length for con- 4 veniently applying same to carrier cartons which necessitates a size and shape different from that heretofore known.

In practice, when a case 'I is raised on its platform 8 to a point immediately below the grid assembly, four (4) cartons 6 therein will position themselves with respect to the elements of the grid so that the spring fingers I0 are directed within the openings or pockets II of said cartons, as best illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5 of the drawings. Thus, these spring fingers will tend to hold the openings in a position with alignment with the compartments 5 of the grid and also retain the cartons somewhat firmly in position in the case.

An important feature of my invention, however, is the means for grasping and retaining the upper portions of the cartons in position so that the upper peripheral edges of the openings II will be directed inwardly giving the openings a position below the compartments 5 to readily receive therethrough the bottles as they are directed through the grid. In carrying out this objective, I provide pairs of sweeper blades I2 which are hinged together as shown at I3 to the lower edges of a pair of cross bars 3. These sweeper blades co-act with spring membersI I4 encircling the pintle of the hinge I3 so that normally the blades l2 extend outwardly with respect to one another, as best shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, forming substantially an inverted V. VThis normal formation and disposition of the blades I2 provides a space into which the upper converging portions of the carton 6 are adapted to be received, as also clearly shown in Fig. 4V of the drawings. bottles are lowered through the compartments 5 I of the grid, the same will not only gcontact the springsA I0 but will forcefully engage the inclined outer faces of the sweeper blades I2 tending to force the latter inwardly against the tension of the springs I4. In this action, the movement of the bottles downwardly will be somewhat. retarded and at the same time the blades I2 will grasp the upper converging portions of the carton 6 to retain the same firmly in position and tend to spread the openings Il thereof so that the droppingV bottles may be readily received through said openings as the same enter said cartons 5. After the cartons in a case have been lled with bottles, the platform 8 is lowered automatically removing the case and bottles from all contact with the grid elements and at such time following removal, the sweeper blades under actionV of the springs Ill will return to their normal position, as shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.

The positioning of the sweeper blades with respect to the bottles and the cartons, as the bottles are lowered into the latter, is best illustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawings.

As stated heretofore, my improvements were primarily designed to be used in the machine filling of carrier cartons which, up to the present time, has not been effectively accomplished.

However, I have found that with a slight ad-- dition, the same structure may be utilized fori the filling of wooden or other cases, where twenty-four (24) bottles are deposited in a case at a time. Through this medium, it would be possible then 'to alternately or at the will of the operator present for filling wooden cases or cardi board carrier cartons, as may be desired. VTo this end, I provide a series of additional spring fingers I5 Vwhich are riveted or otherwise similarly secured to the sweeper bladesv I2, as best illustrated However, as the in Figs. 2 and 4 Aoi the drawings. Thus, these spring ngers I5, which are similar to the spring ngers I0, except that the same are narrower in width, will perform no particular useful function when the sweeper blades are effective in loading carrier cartons. However, when the cases with twenty-four (24) compartments therein are utllized for lling, these additional spring fingers l5 will act as an inside guide for the bottles as the same are dropped in the compartments of the case and will positively separate the bottles as they are being dropped. Without these additional rlngers, there may be a tendency for the bottles to lock as they are dropped downwardly when only the limited number of spring ngers I0 are provided on this grid. Thus, it will be seen that with this addition, the grid is capable of interchangeable use, that is, for the filling of carrier cartons and/or wooden cases.

From the foregoing description of the construction of my improved grid assembly, the method of applying same to use will be readily understood and it will be seen that I have provided a comparatively simple, inexpensive and eificient means for carrying out the various objects of the invention.

While I have particularly described the elements best adapted to perform the functions set forth, it is apparent that various changes in form, proportion and in the minor details of construction may be resorted to `without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the principles of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

l. A grid for a bottle loading machine cornprising a frame having side bars and end bars, cross bars extending longitudinally and transversely in the frame and forming open-ended compartments of dimensions adapting them to have bottles passed downwardly through them into bottle-receiving pockets of bottle-carriers disposed under the grid in position for lling, resilient strips extending downwardly from said cross bars and constituting guides for directing bottles downwardly through the compartments and into the bottle-receiving pockets of the carriers, blades extending longitudinally of certain of said cross bars and arranged in pairs pivotcd at lower edges of the said cross bars and disposed in side by side relation to each other, and springs between companion blades urging the same away from each other whereby upstanding handles of carriers disposed under the grid may t between and be gripped by the companion blades as the said companion blades are forced towards each other by bottles moving downwardly through the compartments of the grid and into the pockets.

2. A grid for a bottle loading machine comprising a frame having cross bars therein defining passages through which bottles are adapted to be passed downwardly into bottle-receiving pockets of bottle carriers disposed under the grid in position for filling, guides extending downwardly from said cross bars in position for directing bottles into the said pockets at opposite sides of handles for the bottle carriers, blades under certain of said cross bars extending longitudinally thereof and arranged in pairs disposed in side by side relation to each other, pins passing through hinge ears carried by the said cross bars and the said blades and pivotally mounting the blades, springs carried by said pins and having downwardly extending arms engaging confronting side faces of the pairs of blades and'. urging the blades away from each other and thereby providing space between the blades to receive the handles of the carriers, said blades; normally extending at an incline from the lowerl edges of the cross bars in position to be engaged. and moved towards each other by bottles moving downwardly through the passages and into the bottle-receiving pockets.

3. A grid for a bottle loading machine comprising a frame, cross bars dividing said frame into passages through which bottles are adapted'. to be passed downwardly into bottle-receiving' pockets of bottle carriers disposed under the grid in position for lling, guides extending down-- wardly at opposite sides of the passages and of dimensions adapting their lower portions to enter the pockets of the carriers and assume positions adjacent opposite side walls of the sockets, blades under certain of cross bars extending longitudinally thereof and arranged in pairs and pivoted to the said cross bars for swinging movement transversely of the said cross bars towards and away from each other, fingers extending downwardly from said blades at an incline towards opposed ones of said guides, and springs urging the blades of each pair away from. each other and yieldably holding the finger carried thereby in position to be engaged and forced towards each other together within the blades by bottles passing downwardly through the passages and into the bottle-receiving pockets.

4. A grid for a bottle loading machine comprising a frame, cross bars dividing said frame into passages through which bottles are adapted to be passed downwardly into bottle-receiving pockets of bottle carriers disposed under the grid in position to be lled, resilient guides extending downwardly from certain of said cross bars, blades Linder certain of said cross bars extending longitudinally thereof and arranged in pairs extending downwardly from opposite ends thereof and pivoted at their upper edges to lower edges ofthe said cross bars for transverse swinging movement towards and away from each other, and springs urging the blades of each pair away from each other and normally holding the blades atan incline to the partitions to which they are pivotally mounted.

SAM L. LEACH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,102,640 Novotny Dec. 21,1937 2,179,648 Thayer Nov. 14, 1939 2,219,827 Kimball et al Oct. 29, 1940 `2,371,027 Cottonar et al Mar. 6, 1945 2,452,376 Holstebroe et al. Oct. 26, 1948 

